Volleyball Heads to Roger Williams for CCC Semifinal Tonight at 7 PM

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (November 5, 2015) - Seeking its first Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Volleyball Championship finals appearance since 2009, fourth-seeded Western New England University will be on the road this evening for a semifinal matchup at top-seeded Roger Williams University in Bristol, R.I.
 
Live stats and live streaming video will both be available via www.rwuhawks.com. The winner of tonight's contest advances to Saturday's CCC Championship final, and will take on the winner of the other semifinal matchup between second-seeded Gordon College and No. 3 seed Endicott College. The CCC champion earns an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Championship, which is slated to begin with first round action on Thursday, November 12^th.
 
Western New England, which is currently riding a season-high four-match winning streak, reached the CCC semifinals with a 3-2 victory over fifth-seeded Salve Regina University on Tuesday night at the Alumni Healthful Living Center. Senior outside hitter Kelsey Armstrong (Groton, Conn.) turned in a career performance to lead the Golden Bears to the win, racking up 18 kills to go with five digs. All-CCC selections Olivia Lathrop (Farmington, Conn.) and Carly Skibinski (Milford, N.J.) also played key roles, combining for 20 kills, seven digs and six blocks.
 
The two teams split the first four sets in the back and forth match, but Western New England raced out to a commanding 6-1 lead in the decisive frame. The Seahawks eventually got back within two (8-6), before Armstrong's 18^th kill of the contest sparked a 7-0, match-ending run by the Golden Bears. With the win, Western New England avenged its five-set loss to Salve Regina in the 2014 CCC quarterfinal round.
 
Roger Williams (17-11) earned the top seed and a first round bye in the CCC Championship after running the table in conference play (8-0) during the regular season. Five Hawks earned All-CCC accolades, including a pair of first team selections in freshman middle hitter Molly Quilty (Duxbury, Mass.) and senior outside hitter Elizabeth Flaherty (Sloatsburg, N.Y.). Flaherty currently leads the CCC with 3.09 kills/set, while Quilty, who was also named the league's Rookie of the Year, owns a CCC-best .323 hitting percentage.
 
In their regular season finale on Halloween, the Hawks rolled to a 3-0 sweep over the University of New England, winning by set scores of 25-18, 25-19, and 25-17. The team has won three straight matches overall following a four-game losing streak from October 17^th-24^th.
 
When Western New England and Roger Williams played during the regular season, the Hawks posted a 3-0 victory on October 9^th in Springfield. Flaherty led all players with ten kills, while Skibinski and Lathrop finished with seven and six, respectively, for the Golden Bears. Western New England is 2-9 in its last 11 matches against Roger Williams dating back to 2009, with regular season wins during the 2009 and 2012 campaigns, CCC semifinal losses in 2011, 2012 and 2013, and a CCC finals defeat to the Hawks in 2009.
 

2015 CCC VOLLEYBALL CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE
All Start Times Subject to Change

Quarterfinals • Tuesday, November 3
#3 Endicott 3, #6 University of New England 1
#4 Western New England 3, #5 Salve Regina 2

Semifinals • Thursday, November 5
#4 Western New England at #1 Roger Williams (17-11, 8-0), 7:00 p.m.
#3 Endicott at #2 Gordon (20-9, 6-2), 7:00 p.m.

Championship Match • Saturday, November 7
Semifinal Winners, TBA (at higher seed)